“What?” Darla furrowed her brows together. Panic shot through her at his request.How am I going to prove this to him?
“Switch with me right now.” Darla regarded him for a moment, this boy who was now a man, who had learned in the span of ten minutes that his best friend had gone off the rails, and that his mom had both cancer and the ability to switch places with people.
If I can get him to understand, maybe I can get him on board with my switch with Pamela. He is a level-headed kid. Actually a man now, I should just do it and let him see for himself.
“Okay. But please don’t freak out when you come into this old body. I can’t handle much activity right now.”
The tether came out again, the same white-blue haze, indistinct fingers flickered in the air and with one swift motion, the hand had him within its grasp. Suddenly, she was standing in Jenkins’s body. She watched as her frail body in the wheelchair looked back at her with horror.
“What the—” Before the words could escape, the tether reached back out, and she was back in her seated position.
Darla watched as a range of emotions played across Jenkins’s face. She remained silent and allowed him to process the new information.Does he think I’m a monster? Is he going to reject me? What is he thinking?Darla bit at the tip of her nail as she waited for Jenkins to say something.
“How?” He finally managed and then slumped into the chair with his long legs splayed out in front of him.
“I don’t know exactly. I was born with the gift.”
“How many times have you switched?” Jenkins sat back up straighter in the chair and brought his hands close to him.
He looks like he is ready to jump out of his skin to get away from me. How can I earn his trust by sharing information without oversharing and causing him to freak out?
“Not that many, just here and there when people needed it.”Or when I needed it.She stared at him to see if he would call her out for lying.
Jenkins ran his hand through his hair. His foot started tapping against the ground as his leg shuddered uncontrollably. He stood and strode out of the room without a word. Darla sat there and contemplated if she should leave and wait for him to come find her to resume the conversation later. Before she could wheel herself out of the room, Jenkins returned. He had a bottle of whiskey in one hand and two short glasses in the other.
He placed the glasses on the table and poured a couple fingers worth in each glass. He slid one across to Darla and leaned back in his chair. Jenkins sipped a quick taste and then downed the reminder of his glass.
Darla picked up her own glass and took a sniff. The scent made her stomach churn, but she took a sip anyway.This conversation needs to continue going well. I still need to tell him my plan to switch with Pamela.
His glass came down hard on the table, and then poured himself another one.
“I know I don’t normally drink, but considering the topic of conversation, I feel it’s necessary.” He sipped slowly out of his second pour. Darla just nodded and took another sip. The golden liquid warmed her chest, and her fingers tingled.
“So you were born as Darla?” Jenkins swirled the liquid around in his glass. He watched it instead of making eye contact with Darla.
“Not quite. I did switch before I came to Hollywood.”
“I have a lot of questions, but some of them I don’t think I want the answers to.” Jenkins finally looked at her. His eyes were distant and cold, closed off.
“I understand.” Darla took a bigger drink, her glass now almost empty. Jenkins leaned forward and poured more for her.
“Does Betty know?” His voice was tense. There was a bite to his tone that Darla had never heard before. Her chest tightened as the thought occurred to her.
I could actually lose him over this.
Darla nodded and looked down at her full glass. Jenkins pursed his lips into a hard line and looked out the nearby window. A comfortable silence settled between them. After years of knowing each other, and the grief they shared in Kinley’s death, they always found comfort in their shared silences.
“Why are you telling me now?” He continued looking outside. Darla raised her eyebrows.I was not expecting this question. Now is my chance to tell him. I just need to get the words out.
“Well, I want to use my gift to be able to continue living. We could stay in each other’s lives, not as mom and son but as friends.” She reached her hand out across the table, and he pulled away as though it would jump out and bite him.
“My plan is to switch with Pamela.” Darla pulled her arm back and gripped the glass with both hands. Her fingernail scratched along the smooth glass. Jenkins said nothing, but his face gave away his thoughts. Darla watched as he pieced together her plan, what she always had planned.
He shook his head. “Please tell me; tell me the truth. Were you planning to switch with Kinley? Is that why you wanted to bring her back to Hollywood?” His blue eyes pooled with tears.
Darla’s body stiffened. She felt her own tears form, her vision of him blurred, and she blinked hard, releasing the tears to fall.
“I promise, toward the end I wasn’t going to. That is how it started, yes, but I changed my mind and just wanted to give you both the best life possible. I wasn’t going to switch with her.” Darla sobbed between words. Her body ached from her illness and old age, and the guilt she carried all these years fell away as the words poured out of her. He finally knew the truth.
